Cambridge Schools Debating Competition

Cora Neumann, Sairah Rees and Juan Manuel Correa Caicedo represented St Clare's in the first round of the Cambridge Schools Debating Competition, one of the biggest debating competitions for children in the world.

Sairah went as support but stepped in at the last minute to replace a competitor from another school who had dropped out. Despite the fact that the others had had two weeks to prepare and Sairah just 15 minutes, she won her debate but could not go through as she was part of a mixed pair.

They debated the role of the UN security council and the effects of streaming on education. Each debate consisted of 4 teams of 2. Juan and Cora made a formidable team.

Juan, with his customary exploitation of deductive logic and menacing politeness, led the judge to an inescapable conclusion – and saved his best argument (like a stiletto-wielding assassin) for the final moments of the debate.

Cora worked without notes and, thanks to her Model United Nations (MUN) preparation, ranged with passion and conviction through an astonishing range of international conflicts.

They were the best team in the first debate but the second, for which competitors are given only 15 minutes' notice, assumed an intimate knowledge of streaming and setting in English schools which they did not, of course, possess.

Neverthesless all three did us proud.

Left to right: Sairah Rees, Juan Manuel Correa Caicedo, Cora Neumann

November